Apocalypse Now

In the serial novel that is Betty's life, today marked a particularly suspenseful chapter: would she get to work on time? Or at all? following last night's nonstop arena rock noisy deluge and three tornado sightings in the New York City area!?!? To make a long night short: Roofs are off houses in Brooklyn.

And this much is clear: when the subways stop, New York City devolves into civilized madness. I say civilized because, beyond the real pain and inconvenience the storm has already caused, it also brings out a friendly chaos and neighborliness that is very special about New York. Complete strangers ask each other in passing if the trains are running both ways, and strangers answer back. People go out of their way to nudge and point to make sure the stranger sitting beside them knows that the F train is actually and A express train making all E as in Edward train stops locally.
And people shuffle and silently, patiently make room for each other on overcrowded, overheated cars.

Still, it's a surreal day following a sleepless night of cold sweats when the trees roared. The humidity is starting to settle in. The Office of Emergency Management has set up cooling centers around the city and the bad dream we're all in together continues.

[Check out the Kensington, Brooklyn Blog for dramatic photos of the storm's wake.]

p.s. By the way, does anybody understand why the dedicated Christian families in Jesus Camp didn't want their kids to believe in global warming? Isn't global warming the ultimate Garden of Eden parallel?